DU-athlon?

Dousman Duathlon Event Results

Yep, results get the top billing this time, things went a little bit better!

Some years back while I was still in Pittsburgh, I spent a few years training (I use this term loosely - but those details are for another post) and competing in sprint triathlons. My theory was that since I had no real talent or desire to excel in any one endurance discipline, I could combine a few of them in one event and acheive some level of success. And to a certain extent, I did.

Its been some time since I actually thought about competing in such an event, mainly because I realized that swimming - or, more specifically, training for swimming - sucks. No offense to the swimmers out there, I have a great respect for what you do. Its just that going back and forth in a 25 meter (or yard, why is it that they're all measured just a little bit differently anyway??) pool is not my idea of a good time.

Enter the duathlon.

It turns out that there are a whole sect of people like me who think that running and biking are fun, but the swimming leaves a little to be desired. That, or its just getting too chilly around here, and even the nutty endurance folks don't want to plunge into 55 degree water when the air is even cooler. For these people, duathlon is the way to go. Generally speaking, the typical triathlon set up of swim-bike-run, is slightly modified to run-bike-run. Two diciplines instead of three, hence the DU.

In the case of the Dousman Duathlon that we competed in yesterday, the distances were a two, two mile runs split by a 20 mile bike ride. Now I must say that what Wisconsin lacks in mountain biking trails, it nearly makes up for in scenic road biking. Miles of rolling hills on back country roads with little traffic and shaded shoulders - perfect for a 20 miles on a Sunday morning. A little more chilly than I'm used to, but I'm slowly adapting.

In any event, things went much better. Finally, a place where being mediocre can actually produce some pretty good results.